Goal: Stop the building of a Brazilian dam complex that will displace thousands of indigenous people and irrevocably damage the ecosystem of the Amazon.

President Dilma Rousseff recently approved the construction of a dam complex on the Xingu River in the Amazon, Brazil. The Belo Monte Dam will displace thousands of indigenous and local people, and will destroy the natural ecosystem of the area. President Rousseff is already under pressure to stop the building of the dam.

The Belo Monte Dam will be a project larger than the Panama Canal, and will displace more than 40,000 indigenous people. The dam will be a death sentence for the native people who live on the banks of the Amazon and depend on it for their survival. The dam will also flood 400,000 acres of rainforest, unbalancing the ecosystem and wiping out the habitats of countless precious species.

President Dilma Rousseff approved the construction of the dam in spite of warnings issued by renowned Brazilian scientists, engineers, economists and religious leaders, all of whom agree that the social, environmental and economic toll of the Belo Monte Dam outweigh its advantages. Indeed, the power that the Belo Monte is expected to generate could be easily produced by investment in efficient energy sources.

Construction of the Belo Monte Dam violates the human rights of the indigenous people who live on the banks of the Amazon. The scars the Belo Monte Dam will leave behind will have lasting effects. Sign this petition to ask President Dilma Rousseff to halt the dam’s construction immediately.

PETITION LETTER:

Dear President Rousseff,

Recently you approved the construction of the Belo Monte Dam on the banks of the Amazon. This dam, if built, will displace thousands of the indigenous peoples who depend on the river and the surrounding rainforest for their survival. It also serves as a death sentence for the countless species whose habitats will be wiped out with the decimation of 400,000 acres of rainforest.

I am writing to urge you to stop the Belo Monte Dam before it is too late. Various experts agree that the dam will cause more damage than it is worth. Above all, those who depend on the Amazon for their survival have the right to continue living there unharmed. Do not deny them their basic human rights. Please retract your approval for the building of the dam.